Synonyms: replica, copy, representation, mock-up, dummy, imitation, double, duplicate, lookalike, reproduction, prototype, stereotype, archetype, type, version, style, ideal, paragon, perfect example, specimen, perfect specimen, fashion model, supermodel, mannequin, sitter, poser, subject, artist's model, photographic model, design, mark, configuration, variety, kind, sort, original, original design, exclusive, toy, miniature, facsimile, prototypical, prototypal, archetypal, illustrative, perfect, exemplary, classic, flawless, faultless, consummate, impeccable
Antonyms: deficient, imperfect
Showing 26 to 50 of 83 results
26. One Giant Leap
John 1:1-18, Isaiah 51:17--52:12
Sermon
Wayne Brouwer
... the scene at Bethlehem. Think of it! One small step for a man... Can you get the image of a tiny baby, wrinkled skin, face all scrunched up, arms and legs twitching spasmodically? And there's the tiny foot, pushing at the strips of cloth that bind it. Five miniature toes bubbling from the end of a little red pad, one small step, not even yet taken. And still, at the same time, one giant leap. "One giant leap . . ." That's what Christmas morning reminds us, doesn't it? It's that in a number of senses, isn't ...
27. Setting An Example
1 Thessalonians 1:1-10
Sermon
King Duncan
... , medical doctors in India. India has more than three million people with leprosy, and Dr. Paul Brand was the first orthopedic surgeon to treat them. Dr. Margaret Brand is an ophthalmologist. The Brands had one patient named Sadan who looked like “a miniature version of Gandhi." Sadan understood what rejection as a leper was. He was made fun of, kicked, and even turned away from hospitals. Sadan said, “I can still remember when Dr. Brand took my infected, ulcerated feet in his hands. . . . Dr. Brand ...
28. Hope For A New Year
Ephesians 1:1-14
Sermon
King Duncan
... a crazy world, but it is also a God-invaded world. "The Word has become flesh and dwelt among us . . ." Christ has redeemed us that we might work in his behalf to redeem the world. An upbeat Word for a downbeat world. 1. "Macho in Miniature" by Ed Liebowitz, Smithsonian, August 2002, p. 28. 2. Interview with astronaut Susan J. Helms by Michelle Burford, O, The Oprah Magazine, July 2002, p. 157. 3. 16 May 1990, pp. A1, A8, A9. Cited in The New Doublespeak by William Lutz (HarperCollins Publishers). 4. "That ...
Children's Sermon
King Duncan
Object: None or bring a miniature candy bar for each child. How many of you like to be first? First in line, first to finish a race, first to get a book read? What do you like to be first at? (Let the children respond.) How many of you like to have the best place such ...
Sermon
Eric Ritz
... and caring family, they showered her with expensive gifts in an effort to overcome this unfortunate circumstance. There were great overstuffed animals, including a six-foot tall giraffe, dolls, dollhouses and games of every description. The room was transformed into a miniature "Toys-R-Us." Every time her parents came to the hospital they brought another present. But they were never able to stay very long for they were always running off to some luncheon, dinner party or society function. One day the ...
Sermon
Robert Noblett
... 's musical setting for its truth, the beauty and richness of that truth are utterly moving. On the other hand, if you are new to -- or inquiring about -- the faith, this is a good place to begin. It is a text that Luther deemed "the gospel in miniature." While people who utilize the Gospel of John for preaching and evangelistic purposes often see its focus on Jesus, the action of this Gospel is really on God. Whatever Jesus says and does through this Gospel is to be seen as an expression of who God is ...
32. Lord of All
Isaiah 40:1-31
Sermon
Curtis Lewis
... individual. The problem with these detractors was that they were looking for magic, a genie in a bottle. They were seeking an immediate fix, a magical potion. Because of this, they became involved in the worship of idols. This is a picture in miniature of people in our age. Fortunetellers, psychic readers, astrology charts, and horoscopes have become a way of life for many. When Ronald Reagan was president, his wife Nancy created quite a stir when the news media reported that Mrs. Reagan regularly consulted ...
33. In The Kingdom Now
Philippians 3:12-4:1
Sermon
Maxie Dunnam
... country, but are currently choosing to live here. Now I believe that’s an apt description of a Christian. We are citizens of Heaven, resident aliens of earth. Get the setting of our scripture lesson clearly in mind. Philippi was a Roman colony, a miniature Rome in distant Macedonia. Many of the inhabitants of Philippi were Roman citizens, probably the aristocracy of that city. There was an intense pride in being citizens of Rome. We have no way of knowing how many, but certainly there must have been many ...
Sermon
Leonard Sweet
... . There are spaces in each of us. Each of us fills in those spaces. Will you fill in those spaces with the presence and power of the Spirit this morning? Those spaces are what we become. Fill those spaces with flesh, live in the flesh, and life gets quickly miniaturized. Live in the flesh, and you'll live smaller than life. Live in the spirit, and you'll live larger than life. Why do people make so little of their lives? The Spirit wants you to make so much of your life. The Spirit wants to help you make ...
35. Warts and All
2 Corinthians 12:1-10
Sermon
Leonard Sweet
... up out of nowhere like mushrooms. Kids especially seem to grow crops of warts on their fingers and hands, making them miserably self-conscious, embarrassed, insecure. At least they did me. Physicians offer all sorts of scary, messy solutions to remove these miniature mountain ranges. One treatment is to burn them off which is done not with fire but with freezing nitrous oxide. Or there's the slow process of dissolving them with an acidic solution. Folk remedies include everything from doing weird things ...
Sermon
King Duncan
... Tucker reminds us of that truth. She tells about an especially meaningful Christmas pageant that took place at her church. It began as a traditional pageant, with children dressed as shepherds and angels and donkeys and such. The congregation sang hymns. Miniature versions of Mary and Joseph walked solemnly up the aisle and knelt by the manger. But then something totally unexpected happened. Little Mary pulled back the blanket swaddling her baby Jesus to reveal that it was really a wooden cross. She ...
Sermon
James Merritt
... s power. You cannot meet stress on a day-to-day basis in your own strength. Listen, stress will sap your strength, but His strength will sap your stress. You know there are two ways of handling pressure, and one is illustrated by a bathysphere, a miniature submarine that is used to explore the ocean in places so deep that the water pressure would crush a conventional submarine like an aluminum can. Bathyspheres have been known to dive up to 37,000 feet into the ocean. Scientists did not know what they would ...
Sermon
James Merritt
... Rossini said, “Well that’s impossible. I know it’s valuable because the King gave it to me!” The friend said, “That’s not why it’s so valuable.” Taking the watch he touched a secret spring at which an inner case flew open, disclosing a beautiful miniature painting of Rossini himself. For years Rossini had a watch and didn’t know that the reason why it was so valuable was not because of what was on the outside, but because of what was on the inside. Do you know what is so valuable about a ...
39. The Tiny O-Ring
Matthew 13:31-35
Illustration
... field joint of the Solid Rocket Booster to stop gases from escaping. Whether it was the unusually cold weather, a contaminate introduced into the zinc putty used on them, any number of potential compression problems, or human error during manufacturing, these two miniature o-rings failed to do what they were designed to do, and the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded before the watching world, 73 seconds into her flight, claiming the lives of all seven crew members. It's the little things. Tiny viruses the ...
Sermon
Bill Bouknight
... an original and eternal creation of Almighty God. Here is the second reason for believing that you are special in the sight of God—YOU BEAR AN AMAZING RESEMBLANCE TO GOD. You were made in the image of God. That does not mean that we are miniature gods. But it does mean that human beings have some godly capacities. We are spiritual, rational, moral, and immortal creatures. Though sin has soiled and distorted our godly image, we are still reflections of Almighty God. I know you are thinking -I wish God had ...
41. Hello!?
Romans 8:26-39
Sermon
Leonard Sweet
... loss of "status" as an institution before our government and its policies; the distance between "conservative" and "liberal" church attitudes. . . . "Hello!?" The problem is that Christians have let their god become too small. They have allowed their salvation to be microchip miniaturized. We are eager to pray that the check we just wrote won't bounce but we are hesitant to ask God to deliver Bosnians, Croats and Serbs from the simmering pot of hatred that keeps them locked together as bloody adversaries ...
42. Humor: A Shopper's Psalm
Luke 1:26-38
Illustration
Greg Asimakoupoulous
... incarnate greed. I need to be reminded that this season's more than plastic Santas, perpetual sales, and Muzak. I need back on the track of reflection. I've derailed, Lord. My emotional fuel is leaking. I'm about to explode. And then I see it. A miniature creche in a gift shop window. A guardian father; a grateful young mom; a baby asleep on the hay. A trio maintaining their harmony despite the discord all around them. And with my nose pressed against the frosted pane my inner pain subsides. At once I am ...
43. Ephesians 2:4-25
Ephesians 2:4-25
Sweet
Leonard Sweet
... illustrates how God finds ways to finagle us back into God's good graces. John 3:16 then magnificently sums up the most remarkable example of God's merciful love in all of history. This text, which Martin Luther called "the Gospel in miniature," has probably captured the hearts and transformed the souls of more people than any other biblical passage. Scholars agree that verse 16 marks the beginning of John's own commentary following Jesus' discussion with Nicodemus. As in his stunning prologue, John reaches ...
44. John 3:1-17
John 3:1-17
Sweet
Leonard Sweet
... also serves warning that God will do what God will do - God's techniques are not to be questioned. All this sets the stage for Jesus' encapsulated pronouncement of what it is God has now chosen to do and why. What Martin Luther called "the gospel in miniature," John 3:16, stipulates exactly "how" God has chosen to bridge the chasm between spirit and flesh (vs.6): with the gift of God's Son Jesus Christ. No less astonishing is the motivation behind this act: God's love for the cosmos and every living being ...
45. Ephesians 2:4-25
Ephesians 2:4-25
Sweet
Leonard Sweet
... illustrates how God finds ways to finagle us back into God's good graces. John 3:16 then magnificently sums up the most remarkable example of God's merciful love in all of history. This text, which Martin Luther called "the Gospel in miniature," has probably captured the hearts and transformed the souls of more people than any other biblical passage. Scholars agree that verse 16 marks the beginning of John's own commentary following Jesus' discussion with Nicodemus. As in his stunning prologue, John reaches ...
46. John 3:1-17
John 3:1-17
Sweet
Leonard Sweet
... also serves warning that God will do what God will do - God's techniques are not to be questioned. All this sets the stage for Jesus' encapsulated pronouncement of what it is God has now chosen to do and why. What Martin Luther called "the gospel in miniature," John 3:16, stipulates exactly "how" God has chosen to bridge the chasm between spirit and flesh (vs.6): with the gift of God's Son Jesus Christ. No less astonishing is the motivation behind this act: God's love for the cosmos and every living being ...
47. Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32
Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32
Sweet
Leonard Sweet
... Piper God Doesn't "Lose" Us Do you remember the horror you experienced when as a child you lost something precious to you? While it may have been worth little in objective, economic terms, for you the value was priceless. Perhaps it was a favorite miniature car, stuffed animal or ball glove. Whatever it was, losing it meant that something that had previously been an integral part of your life was now gone forever. In watching my own small child grow, I have seen this take place a couple of times already ...
Sermon
James McCormick
... to Mark, today’s parable is the last one he ever told. In some ways, I think it is his greatest – I don’t know why it is one of the least familiar – because it catches up the meaning of the whole Bible. It’s really the gospel in miniature. Once we understand it, I think we will never be able to forget it. Mark calls it a parable, but it is not like the other parables. Typically, parables have one main point. Once you get the main point, you get the truth Jesus is communicating. But this story ...
49. John 3:1-17
John 3:1-17
Sweet
Leonard Sweet
... continues to offer powerful insights for any who would listen. By recalling the image of Moses with the healing serpent (Numbers 21:9), Jesus portrays a God who chooses to act in ways we might not understand, but ways always on our behalf. Thus we come to "the gospel in miniature" (Martin Luther): John 3:16.
50. Do You Know My Business?
John 10:11-18
Illustration
Keith Wagner
... car, whips out his notebook, connects it to a cell phone, surfs to a NASA page where he calls up a GPS navigation system, scans the area and opens a database and some 60 spreadsheets with complex formulas. Finally, he prints a 150-page report on a miniature printer, turns to our shepherd and says: "You have exactly 1586 sheep!" "That's correct. As agreed, you can take one of the sheep," says the shepherd. He watches the young man make a selection and bundle it into his Cherokee. As the car starts to pull ...
Showing results